What You Need To Know About Pregnancy |
What is pregnancy? Pregnancy is the process of the female human being carrying one or more offspring inside her uterus. This little seed of life she holds within her womb for nine whole months is known as the fetus or the embryo. The term ‘embryo’ means the developing human being after the first few weeks of conception, while the term ‘fetus’ is used to describe the developing baby from two months until delivery.
The term ‘gravid’ is also used to describe the state of pregnancy. That is why a pregnant woman is sometimes referred to as a ‘gravida’. The woman who is carrying for the first time is called ‘primigravida’.
Sometimes, the pregnant mother may have twins or triplets, rarely even quadruplets (four little lives) growing inside her! The study of human pregnancy, called obstetrics, is one of the most popular branches of Medicine.
The term of pregnancy usually last about 38 weeks from the date of fertilization, that is, approximately 40 weeks from the previous menstruation. But this may vary from woman to woman. Sometimes, the baby is born a little after the expected date of delivery, whereas other babies, who are in a tearing hurry to take a look at the outside world, arrive as much as two months before the estimated delivery date!
Pregnancy could be roughly divided into three sections or trimesters, each lasting about 3 months. The first trimester is the riskiest period for the infant. During the second, the child develops fast. The third trimester marks the beginning of the survival ability in the fetus, where he can carry on even without constant monitoring or medical help.
A woman can expect pregnancy when she stops getting her period after sexual intercourse. Morning sickness is yet another indication, but it might be absent in some women, so it can never be a definite yardstick to measure pregnancy.
Pregnancy can be detected by clinical urine and blood pregnancy tests and hormone tests, soon after implantation occurs, as soon as 6-8 days of fertilization. Home pregnancy tests, on the other hand, require about 12-15 days after fertilization to effectively detect pregnancy.
Do you feel you might be heading for a pregnancy? Visit your doctor and get it confirmed. All the very best to you!
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